Charmander
Charmander is one of the three main characters of the Starter Squad series. Overview Charmander is one of the three starter Pokémon introduced in Choose A Starter, together with Squirtle and Bulbasaur. He is a Generation I Fire-type Pokémon. Charmander is described as impatient, greedy, and mean, although he eventually develops a caring and protective attitude towards his friends. He is also the only starter which has not been captured/sent out to battle by a trainer. Biography Professor Oak's Laboratory :Main article: Choose A Starter Charmander was one of the starters in Professor Oak's lab, alongside Squirtle and Bulbasaur, as a 10-year-old boy named Red was deciding on which starter Pokémon to choose. Charmander boasted about his abilities, as the three Pokémon took turns trying to convince Red to pick them as a starter. Red eventually chose Squirtle and walked away with him, leaving Charmander and Bulbasaur behind. Charmander expressed his disbelief in Red's decision. Bulbasaur asked Charmander to help him, not knowing what to do with his vines. Without saying anything, a spiteful Charmander set one of Bulbasaur's vines on fire with his tail. First battle :Main article: A Wild Encounter Charmander and Bulbasaur eventually left the laboratory, and made their way down Route 1. As they walked through the tall grass, Bulbasaur tried to convince Charmander to return to the lab, but Charmander dismissed the idea, arguing that they would not evolve if they did not train. Suddenly, a wild Caterpie named Pablo appeared, picking a fight with Charmander. Pablo made the first move, attacking Charmander using String Shot. Charmander retaliated using Scratch. However, before Pablo could attack again, Charmander tackled him to the ground, and started scratching his face repeatedly. Although Bulbasaur reminded Charmander that Pokémon were supposed to attack in turns, Charmander rejected the idea, saying that this was a fight and he wanted to win. Charmander then ordered Bulbasaur to hand him a wooden shiv on the ground nearby. Fearing for his life, Pablo begged for mercy, but Charmander decapitated him without hesitation. After killing Pablo, Charmander told Bulbasaur that the battle was a waste of time, as he hardly gained any XP. Showdown in Viridian City :Main article: Showdown at Viridian Charmander and Bulbasaur eventually made their way into Viridian City, where they stopped to as May and Ruby for directions. However, both Pokémon were unable to understand the humans, hearing only gibberish. Bulbasaur then spotted Red by a nearby Mart. Charmander, still upset that Red did not pick him as his starter Pokémon, went to confront him. Red threw out a Poké ball in an attempt to capture Charmander, but Charmander broke free with ease, claiming that Red would have to earn his ownership over Charmander this time. Red sent out Squirtle to battle with Charmander. Squirtle, confident through the knowledge of the type advantage he had over Charmander, attacked first with Bubble. Charmander however, was undaunted by this disadvantage, and dodged the slow attack with ease. Charmander retaliated by pinning Squirtle from behind, and attempting to Bite his head off. Seeing that Squirtle had been bested in combat, Red recalled him into his Poké ball. Bulbasaur commended Charmander on his strength, but Charmander dismissed the compliments, saying that he was not interested in talking to Bulbasaur. As Bulbasaur was distracted, Red threw a Poké ball at him, easily capturing him without any resistance. Red then sent Bulbasaur into battle against Charmander. As Bulbasaur protested Red's decision, Charmander used Ember, setting Bulbasaur's bulb aflame from behind. Red recalled Bulbasaur into his Poké ball to save him from burning to death. Charmander taunted Red for his ineptness in combat. Red tries again to capture Charmander with a Poké ball, but Charmander easily swats it away, claiming that Red did not have enough Badges to train him, before pouncing on Red and biting his head, knocking him to the ground. With Red killed, Charmander releases Bulbasaur and Squirtle, and proclaims himself as their new trainer. Carrying Red's bag, Charmander declared that he will become the best trainer there ever was. Ambushed by the Caterpie Army :Main article: The Caterpie Ambush Needing food to continue with their journey, Charmander speared a wild Butterfree with a wooden shiv. Squirtle was disgusted at the thought of eating another Pokémon, claiming that it was considered as cannibalism. Charmander reminded Squirtle that they are out in the wild, and that Squirtle needed to toughen up in order to survive. Squirtle rejected the idea of eating insects, claiming he was above it, and went off to look for Berries instead. As Charmander and Bulbasaur were distracted while cooking the Butterfree's carcass, the two were attacked and incapacitated by a group of Caterpies. After waking up, Charmander found himself, together with Bulbasaur, bound and hung from a tree. The two were then confronted by the Leader Caterpie, who swore revenge against Charmander and his friends for killing his brother Pablo in cold blood. Charmander claimed that killing Pablo was done out of self-defence, although he was shouted down by a young Caterpie nearby for disrespecting their leader. With his mouth still free, Charmander easily killed the young Caterpie by breathing fire, before proceeding to threaten the rest of the group. However, before Charmander could finish his sentence, the group fired a volley of String Shots over his mouth, effectively muzzling him. As the Leader Caterpie continued to threated Charmander and Bulbasaur, Squirtle returned with his Berries and noticed the commotion. Squirtle, knowing it was a rule for Pokémon to protect their trainers, decided to fight back. Seeing a wooden shiv on the ground nearby, he was reminded of what Charmander told him earlier about toughening up. Squirtle charged at the group with the wooden shiv in hand, but tripped on a rock, and ended up hurling towards the group in a Rapid Spin. Tucked into his shell, Squirtle's pinballed around the trees, knocking out almost all of the Caterpies, and freeing both Charmander and Bulbasaur from their bonds. Now free, Charmander turned his attention to the Leader Caterpie, intimidating it with a Growl. With a burst of Ember, Charmander sent the remaining Caterpies into a retreat, and even managed to kill one by biting its head off. Despite all that happened, Charmander expressed excitement at the prospect of making a new enemy, reasoning that they would gain more XP from wining enemies that wanted to fight them. Charmander went over to a still-recovering Squirtle, and complimented him on the effectiveness of his "shell move". Confrontation with Gaven :Main article: Charmander Gets Punched in the Face In Charmander Gets Punched in the Face, he encounters Gaven and his Hitmonchan and is defeated by them. When Charmander wakes up, Squirtle informs him that Gaven has captured Bulbasaur. Charmander is appalled and orders Squirtle to help him get Bulbasaur back, but Squirtle stands his ground and refuses to follow Charmander’s orders. Charmander starts yelling at Squirtle, who then calls him out on his brute force methods and ineffectiveness, prompting Squirtle to leave. Charmander feels guilty and apologizes to Squirtle, which motivates Squirtle into helping Charmander to get Bulbasaur back. The two defeat the Hitmonchan by grabbing Hitmonchan's Poké Ball, recalling Hitmonchan to it, and smashing the Poké Ball. Gaven ran away and Bulbasaur was rescued. Personality and characteristics Charmander seems to have a narcissistic personality, motivated almost entirely by his desire to grow stronger, and to evolve. This drive has led him to become the most aggressive of the three Kanto starter Pokémon. Charmander is brave and resilient, but also reckless, brutal and impatient in attempts to get what he wants, and is not above killing to meet these goals or just when he is ticked off. Recently, Charmander has begun to become more empathetic and is willing to try more diplomatic methods, though will resort to violence when those methods do not yield results. It is revealed in Episode 8 that his greatest fear is getting captured and controlled by humans, whom he sees as incompetent and slavers. As a Fire-type Pokémon, Charmander is naturally resistant to (and more combat effective against) Bug-type Pokémon, like Caterpies. This can be seen when Charmander easily overpowers numerous Caterpies, a recurrent foe throughout the series. In turn, Charmander has a weakness against Rock-type and Water-type Pokémon/attacks. Notable examples of these weakness can be seen in the episode The Lizard Slayer, where Charmander is nearly killed by both Geodude and Squirtle. Charmander's low level, given his starter Pokémon status, is another disadvantage in combat. In the episode Charmander Gets Punched in the Face, Charmander is quickly incapacitated by a level 34 Hitmonchan, despite the former using his strongest attacks. Another example of this can be seen in Charmander's battle against Flareon in the episode Fight Fire With Fire, where the Charmander is unable to gain the upper hand in a fair fight. Charmander is also susceptible to Poison-type attacks, as shown when he faints shortly after Whiskers lands a hit on him with a Poison Sting attack. Charmander can be quite creative in a fight, often making use of nearby objects or body parts of fallen foes as weapons, typically favoring shivs or other stabbing weapons. In addition this, he is a decent lancer and sword fighter, using wild, flailing swings to stab multiple Caterpie to death in their own nest with a Beedrill's left arm. Charmander's casual indifference to the act of murder eventually gives way to a greater rationale when offering mercy to his enemies in exchange for his demands. While he does not hesitate to kill to achieve his ends, he does not resort to lethal force unless pushed into it by his enemies. Moves Charmander's known moves are: Trivia * Charmander is voiced by Pierce Shipp, creator of the Starter Squad series Gallery Charmander001.PNG|Charmander as seen in the episode Showdown at Viridian. Charmander_Starter_Squad.PNG charmander2.PNG|A startled Charmander, as seen in the episode Ooo Look At Me I'm A Big Scary Ghost. Appearances * Choose A Starter * A Wild Encounter * Showdown at Viridian * The Caterpie Ambush * Charmander Gets Punched in the Face * The Forest King * Fight Fire With Fire * Ooo Look At Me I'm A Big Scary Ghost * The Lizard Slayer Category:Pokemon Category:Male Category:Fire Category:Episode 1 Category:Episode 2 Category:Episode 3 Category:Episode 4 Category:Episode 5 Category:Episode 6 Category:Episode 7 Category:Episode 8 Category:Episode 9 Category:One of principal characters